USA Today story

[Pocono Pilot]

Just saw a USA Today story about 2 pilots from my area.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/jobcenter/2004-10-21-career-side_x.htm

Is the industry that bad that guys are starting their own businesses and getting out of aviation? I still have hours to build and am looking forward to flying the regional airlines someday soon. Wonder if pilots will continue to move out of aviation?

Anybody know these guys?

 

[The_Russian]

Someone stand up and help us.

 

[bigD]

Someone stand up and help us.

LOL! .

 

[Jetlink]

Just saw a USA Today story about 2 pilots from my area.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/jobcenter/2004-10-21-career-side_x.htm

Is the industry that bad that guys are starting their own businesses and getting out of aviation? I still have hours to build and am looking forward to flying the regional airlines someday soon. Wonder if pilots will continue to move out of aviation?

Anybody know these guys?

Oh you poor silly soul.

Stop your training now, invest all that money into anything but airlines and anything to do with airplanes, go to med school, law school, basket weaving school, and anything you make with the money deploy properly will pay off dividends in the end.

If you must fly, scoot around the patter at your local airfield on saturdays and then when you need to travel, buy the internet fares with all the money you are making not in aviation and laugh at all of us standby pax who cant get on the airlines cuz we sold the seats for $99 bucks to you!

Yes I know the 2 COEX guys, and they are not near the only ones. A lot of our more intelligent poor silly souls have their own business' and drop as many trips as possible to avoid flying at this shiithole =)

I understand Willie Nelson is re-making the old song "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys." Cowboy is SO much more lucrative than being an airline pilot anymore. I believe Gordon Bethune and Dwayne Woerthless are using their own money to commission the song

 

[nimtz]

J
Is the industry that bad that guys are starting their own businesses and getting out of aviation?

Yes with all exclamation points and explicatives that can possibly go with it!

J
I still have hours to build and am looking forward to flying the regional airlines someday soon.

Enjoy the time now where you think it will be the greatest thing in the world to work for an airline. It's a shame the day that innocence gets lost. These days it's a lot sooner then you think. Hard to be an optimist while watching former rock solid airlines like Delta hit the bankrupt line.

J
Wonder if pilots will continue to move out of aviation?

At the rate it is going I would expect more attrition due to frustration then usual. Hopefully there will be an upturn that will kill that off, but it ain't in the near future I promise you that. My biggest weapon for staying power is that I'm single and haven't managed to knock anybody up yet that I know of.

These two guys are doing the right thing by finding other means of income besides aviation. My hats off to them. I want to do the same, but lighting hasn't struck me with the right idea yet. Also I'm probably a bit lazy as well. I can assure my lack of intiative does not come from confidence that I'll be making a good living in five years through flying airplanes. Sorry for the gloom, but it's better you understand the situation for what it is now as you make you're future plans.

 

[rgd]

Nobody can tell you what to do, but if you are going to become a pilot cause you think you are going to fly some big airplane for some big airline for some big bucks, you ain't. Your going to fly small airplanes for small airlines for small bucks,(very small bucks) if your lucky. Personally, go get a pharmacuetical sales or medical sales job and rent airplanes for fun. Being a pilot and being an airline pilot are two totally different things. One is fun, exciting, enjoyable, and a pleasurable. The other is a heartbreak. Good luck.

 

[jetbluedog]

My buddy, Petey, explained it well many years ago in his book:

www.squawk7700.net

This forum is just a repeat of everything he wrote about back then!

Highly recommended read!

 

[Pocono Pilot]

"Pensiero has no plans to leave aviation. But he says all around him, pilots are hedging their bets, starting new businesses such as selling real estate or taking other sales jobs. "It's pretty common to start a business," he says."

My mistake. Doesn't look like they are quiting the flying business. Maybe it is not so bad after all. I am way too deep into it to give up.

 

[DirkkDiggler]

Read Hard Landings and you'll learn a lot about the industry. You'll probably never want to fly for a legacy carrier again. This industry is not necessarily bad unless your dream was to only fly for a legacy airline. The sucessful airline business model has changed since deregulation and carriers such as Southwest have tailored their business to the post-deregulation industry. It is still possible to have a long and lucrative career in this industry. You just have to be willing to see that United, Delta, American, Northwest, Continental, etc. are probably not where you want to be for job stability in the future.